Firefox 4 Beta all set for some Android action

Mozilla has taken Firefox Mobile out of the Alpha testing period, with the release of Firefox 4 Beta for Android and Maemo.

The browser brings with it all the things you love about Firefox, including Sync, the Awesome Bar and Add-ons.

Firefox 4 Beta Mobile also includes an Awesome screen, which gives you quick access to your history and bookmarks, as well as form filling features that save you from the arduous task of completing details with your tiny keyboard.

The Beta release should be much quicker than the Alpha one as well, due to the introduction of a new architectural build with Layers, which will work with the pre-existing Electrolysis feature.

Mozilla's director of mobile, Stuart Parmenter, explains:

"A major focus of this release is to increase performance and responsiveness. Two of the big architecture changes are Electrolysis and Layers. Our alpha contained Electrolysis, which allowed the browser interface to run in a separate process from the one rendering Web content, resulting in a much more responsive browser. This beta brings the Layers pieces which improve overall performance and in graphics areas such as scrolling, zooming and animations".

Firefox 4 Beta will also allow developers to get to work on contemporary apps, using the new web standards such as HTML5 and CSS.

The Beta is available now to download for free, direct from Mozilla.com.